A month after the devastating Palisade fire, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced that he had chosen a private consulting firm to help repair infrastructure and mitigate the environment.
Illinois-based Hagerty Consulting “will provide full project management and coordinate all of the various private and public agencies,” the mayor said. The work of rebuilding public infrastructure will also fall under the company’s scope, Bass said.
While the bus toured Pacific Pallisad with Steve Soborov nearly two weeks ago, her recovery emperor hires an outside consultant to represent the city’s interests in the wildfire recovery process I said I was going to. She said a decision would be made by the end of the week.
It is not yet clear how much the company will be paid. She said she will report to Jim Featherstone, who Base has appointed to oversee the city’s emergency operations center recovery group.
“We chose Hagerty, a world-class disaster recovery company, to provide expertise and operational support to promote comprehensive recovery efforts,” Bass said, adding that she was able to help fire recovery and the month. He said at a press conference that provided an update on the city’s progress. The Palisade fires have resulted in widespread devastation in the coastal enclaves and surrounding areas, destroying more than 6,800 structures. At least 12 people were killed.
Located in the Chicago suburbs of Evanston, Hagerty Consulting is an emergency management consulting company specializing in disaster preparation, response and recovery. Its website has a Disaster Discourse blog, which explains the latest wildfires, hurricanes and other emergencies.
Bass also said the city is in discussion with global engineering company AECOM about a presumably another agreement to help recover the costs and ensure that the city receives the federal funds it owes. .
Last week, base spokesman Zach Seidl said the city has finalised contracts with several companies.
Since Bass toured Palisades at Soboroff, the search for recovery contractors has been largely wrapped in secret. The mayor, along with four councillors and other city officials, heard presentations from the three companies at last week’s closure door meeting.
Hagerty, Aecom, and IEM, disaster recovery and response companies, gave a brief zoom presentation during the meeting.
“They had a little pitch session. They talked a little about themselves, but no decision was made,” said Councillor Bob Blumenfield.
Bass has the authority to unilaterally award contracts without competitive bidding or votes from the city council, as he declared a state of emergency in response to a wildfire. However, a council vote is required to fund the recovery agreement.
Councillors Tracy Park and Katie Jaroslavsky and Council’s Markie Harris Dawson meeting were among those present during the meeting.
Real estate developer and civic leader Soboroff was nominated for his post on Bass last month. On Friday, he refused to say how much he will be paid in the role, saying he has not taken any official dollars and that his compensation will be covered by an unknown charity. is.
Soborov said he didn’t know who the organization was or where it came from.
Bass said Hagerty also works in Los Angeles County. And she has kept the possibility of more private companies being hired in the coming days.
On its website, AECOM said it has responded to more than 400 disasters around the world and has over 200 “disaster resilience experts” on its staff. The company has been working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for more than 40 years, according to the site.
“We will repair and recover affected communities by helping to promote a return to normal daily life,” the company said on its website. “We usually carry out these missions within 24 hours of the event and continue to support the recovery and reconstruction process for the next few months and even years.”
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